Edging of fabrics or other materials



July 14, 1936. SUTTON 2,047,337"

EDGING OF FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS Filed June 25, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 V m/mwroe @AWALQ J 60770 er 2 Z 147 July 14, 1936. J SUTTON 2,047,337

EDGING OF FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS I Filed June 25, 1934 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 /QIZQMM 47 43 y 1936- G. J. SUTTO N EDGING OF FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 ll I TL Filed June 25, 1934 Y N m m w M W M J, m A Ry i July 14, 1936. G. J. SUTTON I 2,047,337

EDGING OF FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS- Filed June 25, 1934 .5 Sheets-Sheet 4 NH, 7 X9 July 14, 1936. G. J. SUTTON EDGING OF FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS Filed June 25, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Patented July 14, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE EDGING F FABRICS OR OTHER MATERIALS Application June 25, 1934, Serial No. 732,390 In Great Britain June 26, 1933 15 Claims.

The invention relates to the formation and application of clip like edging elements of metal or other non-fibrous substance to the edges of fabrics, leather, or other materials and more especially to methods of and means for forming and applying such clips.

It is quite common in connection with the leather industry to provide an edging comprising U-shaped metal edging elements having their limbs disposed astride the edge of the sheet of leather and forming a non-continuous edging. Such edges have recently been applied also to the edges of fabrics such as woven dress materials or soft furnishing material such as curtains or hangings. These edging elements, hereinafter termed clips, are in general of small dimensions and after formation are usually applied to the material by hand.

One object of the invention is to provide a method of forming the clips and applying the same to the material in a continuous mechanical process. a I A further object of the invention is to provide a machine or machines for forming the clips and 25 applying the same as they are formed to an edge of material.

The invention will be hereinafter more fully described with reference to the accompanying drawings in which:-

Fig. 1 shows a front perspective view of one embodiment of machine of the invention.

Fig. 2 shows arear perspective view of the same machine.

Fig. 3 shows a view of a one-way clutch used 35 for the feeds to the machine.

Fig. 4 shows a view partly in section of the closing tools for the clip. 1

Fig. 5 shows a front elevation of the major parts of the machine.

40 'Fig. 6 shows a side elevation partly in section of the forming and shearing tools for the clip.

Fig. '7 shows a view of the strip and a clip formed therefrom by the tools of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 shows a side elevation partly in section of the final feed for the clip.

Figs. 9 and 10 show a view in section and plan respectively of the material having the edging clips secured thereon.

Figs. 11-14 show a somewhat modified embodiment, Figure 11 showing a side elevation partly in seotionof the forming and shearing tools for the clip.

Fig. 12 shows a View of the strip and a clip formed therefrom by thetools of Fig. 11.

Fig. 13 shows a, perspective view of certain of the modified elements of the machine.

Fig. 14 shows a side elevation partly in section of the final feed for the clip, the closing tools and the support for the material. 5

Referring to the "drawings Figs. 1 and 2 show the general lay-out of one form of the machine. This comprises a supporting frame It! carrying a table II over which is disposed a sheet metal work supporting table l2. vertical columns or pillars l3, M on which is mounted a recip-rocable ram 15. The lower part of frame i0 is formed with bearings IS, IT which support a shaft l8. On the ends of shaft l8 projecting from said bearings are mounted eccen- 15 trics i9, 20, connected by rods 2|, 22 with the ram I5. Mounted freely on shaft [8 is a fly wheel 23 which is adapted to be coupled to the shaft 18 by means of a clutch 24 operated through a spring actuated rod 25 and pedal 26. The action 20 of the clutch is similar to that of the well-known power press clutch in that depression of pedal 26 causes the coupling action of the clutch which on release of the pedal only disengages when ram I5 is at the top of its stroke. Further description 25 of this device is thought to be unnecessary. The fly wheel 23 is driven by belt transmission (not shown) engaging with said fly wheel and driven from any suitable source of power. In order to facilitate the understanding of the 30 machine each of the main elements used to form and. apply the clip to the material will be described in the proper sequence of operations and these briefly comprise-(1) clip-forming and cutting tools co-operating with a suitable die; (2) the feeding mechanism for a sheet or strip of the substance to be formed into clips; (3) the feeding mechanism for transferring the part formed clip into a position straddling the edge of the material; (4) a feeding and guiding device for the material, and (5) the closing tools applying the clipto the material.

(1) The clip forming t0oZs.-These tools shown in Figure 6 are mounted in a holder 21 secured to the ram l5 by a bolt 28. Adjustment of the is cropped off the strip 30, equal in width to the The frame If! carries 10 clip, by the left hand shearing edge of the tool 33, and the cropped off portion on continued movement is bent by the same tool over the substantially V-shaped portion of the die 34 to form a U-shaped clip element. Simultaneously the tool 32 makes oblique incision in the strip 36 as shown at 98 (Fig. 7) and presses the same downwardly to form projecting ears, the succeeding portion of the strip being clamped by member 3 i. Fig. '7 shows the strip 30 having at its right hand side a cropped element having been cut along the line 39 and about to be bent along the line 45, the following blank having the incisions 38. The bent U-shaped clip element is shown at 4 l When the ram l5 starts to move upwardly the U-shaped clip remains on the V face of the die.

(2) The strip feed, mecha1ufsm.This can clearly be seen on Figs. 2 and 3 and consists of feed rolls 42 mounted on the rear of the table II with their axes arranged longitudinally of the machine and interconnected on their right hand ends (Fig. 2) by gears (not shown). The lower roll 42 has a spindle 43 driven from the reciprocating ram i5 by a one way clutch mechanism shown in Fig. 3, to provide intermittent rotation of feed rolls 52. This comprises a lever 44 coupled to spindle by a roller wedge clutch 45 of known type, the spindle being held against return movement by a spring pressed ball or roller 45 acting against a collar 41. The rear end .49 of lever 4-4 is depressed against an adjustable stop by a spring 59 pulling on the opposite end of lever 45 and is lifted to a constant position by a link 5i connected to a stud 52 on the ram l5. The movement of the lever 44 and consequently the rotation of the rolls 52 is regulated by adjustment of the stop screw 49 and a lost motion device comprising a slot 53 in link 5|. The lift of link 5! may vary from zero to a maximum.

Since certain subsidiary operations of the machine do not require feeding of the strip means are provided to stop the feed without altering the adjustment of the lift, consisting of a sliding stop 54 which is adapted to hold the rear end 48 of lever 44 in its zero position. This feed is of course operative during the upward movement of ram l5.

(3) The clip feeding mechanism.-This comprises two main parts, the first feeding the part formed clip off the die and the second feeding it on to the edge of material. The first feed is shown in Fig. 5 and comprises a feed bar 55 forming a continuation of the V face of die 34 and extending laterally of the machine. Mounted to slide along the feed bar 55 is a feed slide 56 which has its lower face grooved to correspond to the upper face of bar 55. Slide 56 is moved in its feeding stroke, i. e. to the right in Fig. 5 by one or more springs 51, and is withdrawn on the downward stroke of ram l5 by a cam 58 fixed to the ram and acting against a roller 59 mounted on a lever 60 which latter is pivoted at 6| to the top of pillar l4 and is connected to feed slide 56 by a pin 62 moving in a slot 63. The springs 51 during the upward movement of ram 15 cause feed slide 56 to feed the part-formed clip element from the die 34 along feed bar 55 into .a slot 64 extending transversely of bar 55 and formed in a plate 65 extending'from front to back of the machine. An adjusting screw 66 is provided to limit the lateral movement of slide 56 if desired, although normally the said slide feeds the clip into slot 64 Without the necessity of a stop.

The forward feedin slot is shown in Fig. 8.

In this slot moves a pusher element 61 having at its rear end a pin 68 which projects through a slot 69 in a frame piece adjacent plate 65. Pin 68 is connected to the lower end of a lever 78 (Fig. 2) pivoted at its upper end to an arm H mounted on the frame 12 of the feed rolls 42. Lever 10 carries a pin 13 which co-operates with a cam groove 14 mounted on the ram I5. Movement of ram [5 oscillates lever 10 which in turn moves pusher element 6'! to and fro in slot 64.

The U-shaped clip element located with its mouth directed downwardly in slot 64 is moved forward by pusher 6'! contacting with the lower end thereof. Adjacent slot 64 is a spring plate 15 having a pressed out ridge l6 projecting into slot 54 and resiliently contacting the apex of the U clip element. This ridge 76 exerts a frictional dra Ontheedges of the apex of the U clip and with the pusher 61 acting on the lower end of the clip, the latter is caused to rotate through 90 to present its open mouth in an outwardly directed horizontal direction. The clip is fed forward in slot 64 until it contacts with upper and lower stops TI, 16 at which moment there is a lull in the movement of pusher 61,

(4) Feeding and guiding device for the material to be edged.This comprises as shown in Fig. 1 a fabric belt '59 forming an endless conveyor passing over two rollers at opposite ends and passing up through slots 69 in the sheet metal table l2. The course of the belt 19 is indicated diagrammatically by dotted lines in Fig. l. The left hand roller 8| is driven intermittently and the right hand roller 82 comprises a tensioning roller. Roller 8| is mounted on a spindle extending towards the rear of the machine and actuated from the ram l5 by a one way clutch mechanism indicated generally at 83 (Fig. 2) and operating as to adjustment of stroke in exactly the same manner as the mechanism previously fully described in connection with the intermittent drive of the feed rolls 42. The material being edged is guided by a rail 84 (Fig. 1) and is fed by holding the same with light finger pressure on the fabric belt 79, whereupon it is carried through the distance required for spacing the clips on the upward movement of the ram and between the action of the closing tools hereinafter described.

(5) The closing tools.The arrangement of these tools can be clearly seen in Fig. 1. Ram 55 carries two blocks 85, 86, the left hand one 85 being provided with an adjustable screw 57. On downward movement of the ram I5, screw 81 contacts the upper of two levers 88 and 89 (Fig. 4) pivotally mounted on the stop element Ti and 18. These levers carry the closing jaws themselves denoted by 96 and Si respectively shown in Fig. 8. The levers are coupled at their inner ends by a steel roller 92 so that depression of top lever 88 causes raising of bottom lever 89 in pincerlike manner.

Levers 88, 89 are returned to their outermost extreme positions by means of a spring 93. The closing movement of the levers 88, 89 is obviously effected on the downward movement of the ram [5, the jaws carried by said levers pressing the limbs of the U shaped clip element about a material as shown in Fig. 9 so that the ears a penetrate into the sheet fabric b and the clip element lies fiat around the fabric b spaced for example as shown in Fig. 10 which shows their upper limbs c. It is of course obvious that the upper limb 0 may have any desired configuration.

If necessary, the clips may additionally be flattened by means of a flattening hammer 94 (Figs.

.1-4) which includes a resiliently mounted hammer element 95 raised in its uppermost positions by means of a spring 96 and depressed by means of an adjustable screw 91 mounted on the block 85. The hammer element 941s secured to a sta tionary part of the frame such as the table II by means of a threaded spindle 98 actuated by means of a knurled head 99 which projects through the front of the work-table I2. If it is desired to submit an edged fabric solely to a flattening action it may be preferable to mount the hammer element 94 at an alternative position shown in Figure 1 beneath the block which latter is provided with an adjustable screw H15 adapted to contact the upper end of the resilient hammer member 95.. Adjustment of the position of the hammer 94 is effected by unscrewing the threaded spindle 9B and sliding the hammer 94 into its right position shown in Figure 1, a further threaded aperture being provided ,at the said position to receive the threaded spindle "shown at II] I.

In the case where a simple flattening operation is desired the strip feed mechanism will be rendered inoperative by means of the sliding stop 54 hereinbefore described.

The operation of the above mentioned device will be apparent from the previous description. Briefly summarized it consists in feeding a strip 30 by the feed rollers 42 while the forming and shearing tools are raised into a position below the said tools, then on the downward movement of the ram the tools act in the previously described manner to crop a blank from the strip with projecting ears and to bend the same into a U-shaped clip element. On the following up ward movement of the ram the clip is fed along the guide bar 55 by the slide 56 and is placed thereby in the slot 64. On the continued upward movement of the rain the pusher member 67 carries the U clip forward and at the same time turns it from a position Where the mouth opens vertically downward into aposition where the mouth is horizontally directed and places the clip astride the article to be edged against the stops 11, I8. On the subsequent downward movement of the ram the closing jaws 90, 9I press the limbs of the U-clip together in the previously described manner.

It will thus be clear that the strip feed, the feed of the material and the feed of the clip operate in an intermittent manner on the upward movement of the ram, while the shearing and forming tools, the closing jaws and if desired the flattening hammer, operate on the down stroke of the ram. V

In the modified embodiment shown in Figs. 11-14 certain modifications have been applied in order to allow the edging of finished articles such as gloves or the like the clips being blanked out of a strip somewhat wider than the clip as dis-' tinot from being cropped off a strip the same width as the clip.

In order to facilitate the understanding of the modifications only those parts which have been modified have been shown in perspective view in Figure 13. The support for the goods tobe edged in Figure 13 comprises a roller III preferably rub-' ber covered which is preferably driven intermittently by a one-way clutch in exactly the same manner as the driving roll for the belt described in connection with Figs. 1-8. While such a feed roll is particularly suitable for supporting articles such as;glovesv or the likewhich may be drawn over the roller from the front end it can obviously also be utilized in connection with sheet materials in the same way as the belt conveyor described in Fig. 1.

The forming and shearing tools shown in Fig.

11 operate in the following manner. The holder 2'! is secured to the ram I5 by a bolt 28 in the same manner as in the construction shown in Figure 6, but the number and purpose of the tools is different owing to the fact that in this case the clip blank is .to be blanked out of a strip of metal or the like, wider than the clip blank.

Mounted in the holder 21 is a blanking tool III conforming to the configuration of the clip blank.. A further pressing element H2 is provided to cause in conjunction with the die hereinafter described the turning up of the ears on the clip blank. H3 denotes a press tool adapted to bend the clip blank into a substantially U- shaped element, the mouth of the U-clip being directed vertically upwards. A cutter H4 is provided to cut the scrap strip remaining over after stamping out of the blank in order to avoid the necessity of withdrawing a strip of scrap.

Co-operating with the above mentioned forming and cutting tools is a die which consists of a plurality of elements shown in Fig. 11 namely pad member H5 controlled by a spring H6 which on lifting of the blanking cutter III presses the cut out blank back into position in the strip 35 so that the same can be carried forward beneath the tool H2. A resiliently mounted pad element I It is controlled by a spring I I8 which is adapted to receive the blank and clips in a recess H9 the front wall of the recess being inclined upwardly and outwardly as at I2I to correspond with the cut away portion I25 of the tool H2 in order to form the ears on the clip. Co-operation of the tool H2 and the die II'I turns up the ears on the front corners of the clip blank. (Jo-operating with the pressing tool H3 is a die member I22 having a V-shaped groove I23 formed in its upper face, the tool I I3 having recesses I24 corresponding in position to the ears on the clip blank. On completion of each downward movement of the ram there is located in the groove I23 a U-shaped clip blank of the form shown diagrammatically in Fig. 12 having its mouth opening vertically upwards and the ears projecting from its right hand limb.

During the upward movement of the ram the clip is fed along a feed bar I25 by a slide similar to that described with reference to Figs. 1-8 and is placed in the slot 64 provided in this case with a small V-notch I26. The resilient plate member forming a cover plate for the slot and a resilient abutment is in this example mounted on the upper side of the plate 65 and is denoted by I2'I. On the forward movement of the pusher element 61 the U-shaped clip is caused to tilt on the right edge of the notch I26 so as to be rotated substantially through to slide forward in the slot 64 with its mouth horizontally directed as shown in Fig. 14. The forward position of the pusher member 61 is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 14.

The closing tools shown in Fig. 13 have been somewhat modified. The stops for the clip adjacent the front end of slot 64 comprise an upper stop I28 mounted on a block I29 forming part of the ram I5 and forced downwardly by means of a spring I30. The lower stop comprises a bevelled edge I3I formed on the roller III]. The mounting of the stop I28 is such that it is released from the material b only for a sufficient time to allow the feed of the material 1; to take place and at all other times it forms a resilient holding member for the material I) on the roller I Ill. The rear face of the stop I28 is preferably cut away as shown at I32 to allow the free movement of the upper limb of the U-clip when being closed around the edge of the material.

The closing tools comprise an upper closing tool I33 which is fixed in the block I29 but is adjustable in height therein by means of an adjusting screw I34. The upper closing jaw I33 is moved downwardly with the ram I5 to press the upper limb of the U-shaped clip down. The lower closing jaw I35 is mounted on the end of a lever I36 pivoted to the machine frame and controlled by means of a rod I38 adjustably secured to a block I39 integrally secured to the ram I5. The action is such that downward movement of the ram I5 depresses the right hand end of lever I36 causing the lower jaw I35 to move upwards from its position and to close the lower limb of the U-shaped clip against the under side of the fabric.

It is believed that the above mentioned description sufliciently describes the operation of the modified machine elements without the necessity of amplifying the same.

It is to be understood that the particular forming and shearing tools shown in Fig. 11 can be equally well applied to the construction of Figs. 1-8 or alternatively that the tools shown in Fig. 6 can be applied in conjunction with the material support and closing jaws and stops shown in Figs. 13 and 14. Further, in the modified construction shown in Figs. 13 and 14 a flattening hammer as described in conjunction with Figs. 1-8 can be used if desired, in which case it is preferred to mount the flattening hammer in its right-hand position as shown in Figure 1.

What I claim is:-

1. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a pressing head including pressing and cutting tools, means to feed intermittently a strip of said substance beneath said pressing head, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip, a guide bar extending laterally of said die, means to feed said U-shaped element along said guide bar, a member provided with a feed slot disposed at an angle to said guide bar, a reciprocating pusher element moving within said slot means within said slot to rotate said U-shaped element about a horizontal axis, stop means adjacent the end of said slot to limit the forward travel of said U-shaped element and pressing means operative to press the limbs of said U-shaped element together when contacting said stop.

2. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a pressing head including pressing and cutting tools, means to feed intermittently a strip of said substance beneath said pressing head, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element, from said strip, a guide bar having a V- shaped face extending laterally of said die, means to feed said U-shaped element over said guide bar, a member provided with a feed slot, disposed at an angle to said guide bara reciprocating pusher element moving within said slot, resilient means within said slot to rotate said U-shaped element about a horizontal axis, stop means adj acent the end of said slot to limit the forward travel of said U-shaped element and pressing means operative to press the limbs of said U- shaped element together when contacting said stop.

3. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a pressing head including pressing and cutting tools, means to feed intermittently a strip of said substance beneath said pressing head, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip, a guide bar extending laterally of said die, means to feed said U-shaped element along said guide bar, a member provided with a feed slot disposed at an angle to said guide bar, a reciprocating pusher element moving within said slot to rotate said U-shaped element about a horizontal axis, stop means adjacent the end of said slot to limit the forward travel of said U- shaped element and pressing means operative to press the limbs of said U-shaped element together When contacting said stop, and a support for the material disposed adjacent said stop means.

4. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram, intermittently acting feeding means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip a guide bar extending laterally from said die, a member having a feed slot disposed at the end of and at an angle to said bar, resiliently acting feeding means feeding the U clip along said bar from said die intov said feed slot, a reciprocating pusher member moving within said slot to move said clip forward within said slot, resilient means adapted to rotate said U clip within the slot during its forward movement, stopv means adjacent the end of said feed slot to. limit said forward movement, a support for the material being edged, and further press tools actuated by said ram to close the limbs of said U clip together.

5. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cuttings tools mounted on said ram, intermittently acting feeding means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a u-shaped clip element from said strip a guide bar extending laterally from said die, a member having a i'eed slot disposed at the end of and at an angle to said bar, resiliently acting feeding means feeding the U clip along said bar from said die into said feed slot, a reciprocating pusher member moving within said slot to move said clip. forward within said slot, resilient means adapted to rotate said U clip within the slot during its forward movement, an intermittently r0- tated roller support for the material to be edged, a bevelled edge on said roller forming a stop for the U clip during its forward movement and further press tools actuated by said ram to close the limbs of said U, element together.

6. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram intermittently acting feeding means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating' with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said clip, transmission mechanism including a one way clutch connecting saidstripfeed with said ram, means to vary the stroke of said strip feed, means actuated from said ram to feed said U-shaped clip from said die so that its limbs straddle the edge of said material and means to press said limbs together so as to engage said material.

7. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram, intermittently acting feeding means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said clip, transmission mechanism including a one way clutch connecting said strip feed with said ram, means to vary the stroke of said strip feed, means actuated from said ram to feed said U-shaped clip from said die so that its limbs straddle the edge of said material, a support for said material, transmission mechanism including a one-way clutch connecting said support with said ram to produce intermittent motion of said support, means to vary the movement of said support and means to press said limbs together so as to engage said material.

8. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram, means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip, said tools being operative on the clown stroke of said ram, means to connect said strip feed with said ram only on the upstroke of said ram, means actuated during the upstroke of said ram to feed said U-shaped clip from said die so that its limits straddle the edge of said material, means actuated only on the upstroke of said ram to feed said material and pressing means actuated on the down stroke of said ram to close the limbs of said clip so as to engage said material.

9. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram, means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip, said tools being operative on the down stroke of said ram, means to connect said strip feed with said ram only on the upstroke of said ram, means actuated during the upstroke of said ram to feed said U-shaped clip from said die so that its limits straddle the edge of said material, means actuated only on the upstroke of said ram tofeed said material, pressing means actuated on the down stroke of said ram to close the limbs of said clip so as to engage said material and a hammer actuated on the down stroke of said ram to strike the upper limb of said clip.

10. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the sameto the edge of a material comprising in combination a reciprocating ram, pressing and cutting tools mounted on said ram, intermittently acting feed- 5 ing means feeding a strip of said substance beneath said tools, a die co-operating with said tools to form a U-shaped clip element from said strip, means to feed said U-shaped clip from said die laterally of said strip feed, a member having a forwardly extending slot adapted to receive said U-shaped clip, a support for the material located adjacent the forward end of said slot, a rim on said support, a stop member slidably mounted on said ram' and disposed adjacent the forward end of said slot, resilient means pressing said stop members downwardly to contact said support, means to feed said U-shaped clip forward in said slot so that its limbs contact said stop member and said rim, a downwardly acting upper pressing jaw mounted on said ram and an upwardly acting lower pressing jaw actuated by said ram to press said limbs together.

11. A method of edging fabrics, leather and like materials with clips of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified which consists in forming blanks from a sheet of said substance, folding said blanks into separate U-shaped elements positively feeding each U-shaped element individually from its point of formation in a lateral direction to another point remote from said forming point so as to straddle the edge of said material located at said remote point and forcing the limbs of said U-shaped element together at said remote point to complete the formation of the clip and to cause the limbs thereof to engage around the edge of said material.

12. A method of edging fabrics, leather and like materials with clips of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified which consists in feeding forward a strip of said substance, forming blanks from said strip, moving said blanks forward by the agency of the fed strip, folding said blanks into U-shaped elements, moving said U-shaped elements laterally of the movement of said blanks, positively feeding each laterally moved U-shaped element so as to straddle the edge of said material disposed at a point remote from the point of forming said blank and forcing the limbs of said U-shaped element together at said remote point to complete the formation of said clip and to cause said limbs to engage around the edge of said material.

13. A method of edging fabrics, leather and like materials with clips of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified which consists in feeding forward a strip of said substance, forming blanks from said strip, moving said blanks forward by the agency of the fed strip, folding said blanks into U-shaped elements, moving said U-shaped elements laterally of the movement of said blanks, positively feeding each laterally moved U-shaped element so as to straddle the edge of said material disposed at a point remote from the point of forming said blank, rotating said U-shaped element about its base through an angle during said feeding movement and forcing the limbs of said U-shaped element together at said remote point to complete the formation of said clip and to cause said limbs to engage around the edge of said material.

14. A machine for forming clip like edging members of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material including in combination means for stamping individual clip blanks from a sheet of said substance, means to fold said individual blanks into U-shaped elements, means to feed said sheet forward beneath said stamping means, additional feeding mechanism for positively moving each U-shaped element when formed in a lateral direction to a remote point so that its limbs straddle the edge of said material disposed at said remote point and means at said remote point to press the limbs of said U-shaped element together so as to engage said material.

15. A machine for forming clip like edging elements of a non-fibrous substance of the character specified and for applying the same to the edge of a material which includes in combination means for intermittently feeding forward a sheet of said substance, press tools for forming separate fiat clip blanks from said sheets, means to fold said flat blanks into U-shaped elements, a support for carrying said material spaced from said press tools, additional feeding mechanism for moving each U-shaped element when formed positively in a lateral direction relative to the forward feed of said sheet to a point remote from its point of formation so that the limbs of the U member straddle the edge of said material and means at said remote point to press said limbs together so as to engage said material.

GERALD JOHN SUTTON. 

